Connecting science and policy: the impact of the UK Parliament’s Environmental Audit Committee

Calls abound for more evidence-based policy-making. However, the evidence-policy relationship is not simple, as recent UK experiences with, for example, climate change demonstrate. Studying institutions which straddle the boundary between evidence 'providers' - like scientists - and policy-makers can improve understanding of the evidence-policy relationship. The UK’s Parliamentary Environmental Audit Committee (EAC) is such an institution; it acts as an intermediary between evidence produced by various actors, and the political process of implementing sustainable development. The operation of Parliamentary committees is little studied. This documentary analysis and elite interview driven project aims to better understand: the role of contributors to EAC investigations; why some actors' contributions are favoured over others; and the EAC’s role in setting agenda

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